The video shows the moment of an explosion at the fertility clinic in Palm Springs
Videos sent by nearby residents show the moment when a vehicle exploded near a fertility clinic in Palm Springs, killing one person and injuring four people.
Palm Springs, California – A few days after a fatal explosion near a fertility clinic in Southern California, we are beginning to get a clear grasp of the suspect and the motives of the attack. Authorities are investigating whether anyone else knew the suspect’s plan in advance.
The FBI has died in Palm Springs Blast, 25-year-old Guyed Ward Bartos of Twentin Palms, California, as a suspect in the bombing. The FBI confirmed that Bartkus’ DNA matched the DNA of the only victim of the May 17 explosion.
Investigators believe that although his online communications are being scrutinized because others may have known the attack beforehand, Bertus believed he acted alone. Palm Springs Police Chief Andy Mills told The Desert Sun, part of the USA Today Network, that Bartkus discussed explosives online until 2022.
“I don’t know he had any help. I know he was discussing this in his chat rooms and in his YouTube channel. He was experimenting with a variety of explosives,” Mills said. “We had a conversation on the dark web about this kind of thing.”
Mills said it is up to federal investigators to continue investigating Bartkus’ online activities and determine whether someone else knows the plan and should face criminal charges.
“It’s the FBI’s fault. They’ll get to that bottom, I’m totally confident,” Mills asserted. “No one may be charged, but we will turn all the rocks upside down to ensure.”
“There was a nihilistic idea on the subject.”
Akil Davis, assistant director of the Los Angeles FBI Field Office, called the incident “one of the biggest bombing investigations conducted in Southern California.” Davis compared the magnitude and explosion of the 2018 Aliso Viejo bombing in Orange County. Davis said investigators believe Bartos targeted the fertility clinic based on his online post and apparent “manifesto” he had reviewed.
“Subjects had nihilistic ideas, and this was a targeted attack on the IVF facility,” Davis said. “We treat this as a deliberate act of terrorism.”
The FBI confirmed it is considering reporting witnesses. The tripod being discovered at the location of the bombing was thought to be intended to live stream the incident.
Bartks’ father, Richard Barts, explained the childhood incident when Guy Bartks played in a match and burned down the house. According to the archive version of the website, YouTube accounts that have been deactivated and appear to belong to Guy Bartkus appear to belong to Guy Bartkus.
The FBI has not confirmed the suspect’s suspicion of Bartkus’ online accounts, and a spokesman for the department declined to comment on the suspect’s online activity when asked by the desert sun.
“It’s a very heavy device.”
Several questions have been answered, but the FBI has not yet revealed the type of explosives used.
Dwaynewall, a Palm Springs resident who was one of the first people on the scene after the explosion, found a propane torch in a nearby Denny’s car park and handed it over to the FBI as evidence.
“It’s a very heavy equipment,” he told the desert sun. “It was solid. It was very small, almost like a gun barrel, a sturdy gun barrel, but a very small opening where gas was forced.”
The device’s logo has identified it as the Bernzomatic Trigger Start Torch, a consumer product available on Amazon for $47. When asked on May 18th whether the torch was used to light a bomb, Davis did not comment directly.
“We get hundreds of tips per day and follow all of them,” he said. “As you can imagine, there’s evidence that this scene is so large that it’s scattered around a 360-degree boundary several hundred feet in diameter.”
The FBI appeared to be compiling a crime scene investigation at Palm Springs, Tony Resort City, located in the Colorado Desert section of the Sonora Desert. The city is over 100 miles southeast of Los Angeles.
Palm Springs Police say there is no continuing threat to the community. Authorities are investigating Batos’s location on the morning of the attack.
The FBI said Bartkus drove a 2010 Silver Ford Fusion Sedan with license plate number 8HWS848. Suspects or anyone with information about the attack can contact FBI Chip Line 1-800-225-5324 (800-CALL-FBI).
Sam Morgen covers the city of Palm Springs for the desert sun. Contact him at smorgen@gannett.com.
Contributions: Paul Alban-Burgio, Sam Morgen, Jennifer Cortez, Kate Franco, Robert Anglen, Christopher Damien, Toray Network, USA
